Planning and Sustainability

Natural Resources and Agriculture

The Natural Resources Chapter of the Tompkins County Comprehensive Plan aims to preserve and enhance the County's natural features and working rural landscapes. To achieve this, the County supports policies that preserve ecosystems, protect farmland, reduce the impacts of invasive organisms and climate change, and promote best management practices. For more details, please refer to the Natural Resources Chapter(PDF, 11MB) of the Tompkins County Comprehensive Plan.

Tompkins County Agricultural Districts

Tompkins County has two Agricultural Districts. Agricultural District 1, which generally runs through the municipalities on the East side of Cayuga Lake, and Agricultural District 2, which runs through municipalities on the West side of Cayuga Lake.

View the Tompkins County Agricultural Districts on the Ag District Viewer.

Consistent with NYS Agriculture & Markets Law Article 25AA section 303-a, the County Legislative body must conduct a review of the District every eight years after District creation and every eight years thereafter. Property owners can apply annually to have property considered for inclusion into the Agricultural Districts. Removals from the District can only occur during the 8-year updates.

Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County, on behalf of the County Agriculture and Farmland Protection Board and County Legislature, facilitates the review of Agricultural Districts. These comprehensive reviews take place every 8 years for each district. District 1 was last reviewed in 2020. District 2 was last reviewed 2024. In addition, every year from February 1 - March 2 specific requests from property owners for addition to the Agricultural District are reviewed. All requests for inclusion must be received by March 2. For more information on the process, please see Cornell Cooperative Extension's Agricultural Districts page.

Conservation Strategy

The Tompkins County Conservation Strategy (2012)(PDF, 447KB) presents 11 specific strategies to conserve critical identified resources in the County over a 10-year period. This strategy is based on the recommendations of the Tompkins County Conservation Plan, which includes analysis, findings and recommendations for both natural and agricultural resources. Other agency and community partners’ plans were also considered in the development of this strategy. The Tompkins County Conservation Strategy recognizes that protection of Tompkins County’s natural and agricultural heritage requires coordination with agency and community partners and collaboration with willing and interested landowners in the County. The final Conservation Strategy was endorsed by the Tompkins County Legislature October 2, 2012.

Programs

Natural Infrastructure Capital Program

The Natural Infrastructure Capital Program(PDF, 134KB) provides funding to protect natural systems that can help mitigate the adverse impacts of climate change. At this time, the focus is on: 1) mitigating the potential for downstream flooding and sedimentation, and 2) establishing important migratory corridors to enable plant and animal species to be more resilient in the face of a changing climate.

Have a project for the Natural Infrastructure Capital Program? Please submit the Natural Infrastructure Capital Program Application(PDF, 219KB) for consideration.

Purchase of Development Rights (PDR)

Purchase of Development Rights (PDR) programs pay farmers who voluntarily commit to protecting their farmland from development through agricultural conservation easements. Funding pays the farmer the appraised difference between the “development value” of the land and the “agricultural value” of the land. When a farmer enters into a conservation easement, certain development rights are removed though the farmer retains ownership and agricultural use of land. Farmers, municipalities, and conservation partners, like land trusts, work together to establish and implement these projects. Municipalities and conservation partners annually monitor to ensure easement conditions are met. These programs can provide landowners with capital that can help enhance the economic viability of their farm operations or help transition farm ownership while also protecting the long-term legacy and environmental assets of the farm.

Tompkins County, in close cooperation with Cornell Cooperative Extension, the New York Agricultural Land Trust, the Finger Lakes Land Trust, and municipal governments, works with farmers to access New York State's PDR program. The state's program is called the Farmland Protection Implementation Grants Program and is administered through the NYS Department of Agriculture and Markets. It is a highly competitive statewide program that typically has one award cycle every other year. There are multiple funding categories for this grant, with specific eligibility criteria depending on the type of farm and the type of project. To find out if your farm might qualify you can review the summary of the current funding categories(PDF, 177KB) for our region.

The County Agriculture and Farmland Protection Board is responsible for selecting and ranking potential projects during a pre-application process. The pre-application process begins in the spring of even numbered years (e.g., April 2024) and pre-applications are due the following August. For more information, email Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County.

Interested? Complete the 2025 Tompkins County FPIG Pre- Application(PDF, 1002KB).

Important dates and information regarding the 2025 Tompkins County FPIG Pre-Application:

Interested parties should contact Crystal Buck at Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County as soon as possible to make an appointment to discuss the program and application process, receive assistance with mapping and data, and prepare a draft land map for your project. You can contact Crystal via email at cb258@cornell.edu or phone at 607-272-2292 x265.
Pre-application deadline: all materials (except maps and site plan) must be submitted no later than Monday, March 3, 2025 at 4:00pm. The following are options for submitting your complete materials:
- Email: Email all materials to cb258@cornell.edu. Submission confirmation will be provided within one to two business days. If you do not receive confirmation, please call CCE at 607-272-2292.
- Hand Delivery: Bring all the materials to the address below.
- Mail: Mail all materials to the address below. Mailed submissions should be postmarked at least two days in advance of the deadline to ensure timely delivery.
Tompkins County Agriculture & Farmland Protection Board
c/o Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County
615 Willow Avenue
Ithaca, NY 14850

Plans and Studies

Tompkins County Habitat Connectivity Strategy(PDF, 1MB) (2018)
Tompkins County Conservation Plan Part I: A Strategic Approach to Natural Resource Stewardship(PDF, 7MB) (2007)
Tompkins County Conservation Plan Part II: A Strategic Approach to Agricultural Resource Stewardship(PDF, 8MB) (2010)
Tompkins County Agriculture and Farmland Protection Plan(PDF, 22MB) (2015)
Tompkins County Forest Management Plan (2007)
Management Plan(PDF, 42MB)
Management Plan Appendices(PDF, 11MB)

Data, Maps, and Surveys

Natural Features Focus Areas

Each of the 14 Natural Features Focus Areas included in the Tompkins County Comprehensive Plan has an individual plan that provides detailed information about the unique characteristics of the area and outlines a tailored approach to implementation.